Garuda To Serve Lombok-Makassar Route As Of Oct. 16

Mataram, W Nusa Tenggara, Oct 3 (ANTARA) - Garuda Indonesia will open a direct flight linking Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara province to Makassar in South Sulawesi province as of October 16, 2012, according to a governor. "As of October 16, Garuda will serve a Lombok-Makassar new flight route using a plane of CRJ 1000 NextGen Bombardier Aerospace type," West Nusa Tenggara Governor TGH M Zainul Majdi said after receiving a report from Head of the West Nusa Tenggara Provincial Transportation, Communication and Information Office Ridwan Syah here on Tuesday. Zainul said Garuda bought Bombardier Aerospace planes from its Canadian manufacturer Bombardier. The operation of the planes is in line with Garuda`s expansion program to develop domestic and short-distance regional routes which have high density, he said. As a national flag carrier, Garuda has the obligation to support the implementation of the Master Plan for the Expansion and Development of Indonesian Economy (MP3EI) of corridor V covering West Nusa Tenggara, Bali and East Nusa Tenggara, he said. The development of MP3EI`s fifth corridor stresses the development of tourism and national food industries, he said. Among the real actions taken to implement the MP3EI program in corridor V is improving connectivity among regions, islands and states, he said. "The connectivity between Lombok island and the rest of Indonesia such as Bali, Java and Sulawesi must always be increased. And airline companies must give concrete support to it," he said.